Chapter 106 Comparing Goods Leads to Discarding
"Your Highness Wan!" A clear, loud voice called out, and Zhen Huan, who was walking and chatting with Liu Zhu, stopped abruptly and looked up blankly in the direction from which the voice came.
Hongli, wearing a wreath of willow leaves on his head, stood on the artificial rock and waved to her from afar.
"Come down quickly, don't fall!" She took two steps forward with a smile, waving her handkerchief to urge people to come down quickly.
Hongli nimbly leaped down from the artificial hill in a few steps, walked quickly to Consort Wan, flicked his sleeves, lifted his robes, and knelt down respectfully to offer a salute—"Greetings to Your Highness, may Consort Wan be blessed."
With a loving look in her eyes, Zhen Huan bent down and helped the person up. The substitute patted his robes and kept muttering, "How did you climb so high? Aren't you afraid of falling?"
Upon hearing this, Hongli lowered his head, the joy on his face vanishing instantly. He looked up at Consort Wan with a disappointed expression and said, "Besides the nanny, no one has ever cared about me like this. I heard that Father Emperor has come here, and I wanted to pay my respects to Father Emperor. But I was afraid that Father Emperor would not want to see me, so I climbed up the artificial hill to see if I could see Father Emperor."
He was just a child, not much older than Hongzhao and Hongjin. His words were so pitiful that they naturally evoked sympathy for a child who had no one to care for him.
Zhen Huan frowned, and as expected, a look of heartache flashed in her eyes. She raised her hand and gently wiped away the remaining leaves from the willow wreath on his forehead—"If you want to see your imperial father, I will take you to see him."
She remembered this prince with a special status when she first came to the Yuanmingyuan. Although he was called a prince, he was far inferior to the Crown Prince, the Third Prince, the Sixth Prince, and even the newly born Seventh Prince.
Without her biological mother by her side and not favored by the emperor, being raised alone in the Yuanmingyuan Garden, it's likely that the servants wouldn't have been very attentive to her.
It's generally not good to think about people behind their backs. Just as she was feeling sorry for the little prince in front of her, she heard Jinxi behind her deliberately raise her voice.
"Greetings, Your Highness. May Your Highness be blessed."
The people following behind her all bowed down, and Zhen Huan was startled and stood up straight. Sure enough, not far away, a young man in an apricot-yellow robe was walking towards them with his hands behind his back.
"Your Highness is well."
You should know that when the Crown Prince kowtowed and broke his head, the Emperor treated Zhen Huan coldly for quite some time. It was from that time that she truly felt that the Crown Prince was different from the other Emperor's children, and that the Emperor believed that the Crown Prince was someone who should never be touched or disobeyed.
Hongli turned around curiously when he heard the sound. He knew that his fifth brother was favored by his father, the Emperor. While he was still worrying about the charcoal fire in winter, his younger brother had already been named the Crown Prince.
A thousand thoughts raced through his mind in an instant. He turned around, bowed, and clasped his hands in a respectful greeting—"Greetings, Your Highness."
Hongzhao hadn't intended to get close, but when he saw who was opposite Consort Wan, he raised an eyebrow and walked over anyway. He first nodded slightly to Consort Wan and greeted her, "Greetings, Consort Wan." Then he raised his hand to support Hongli's elbow and called out, "Fourth Brother."
Zhen Huan looked at the two princes standing in front of her, both of whom were the emperor's children. But now that they were standing together, it was clear that their treatment was vastly different.
As the weather grows warmer, Hongzhao is wearing a thin crepe-like shirt specially commissioned by the Emperor from the Imperial Household Department. A single bolt of this shirt would cost a thousand gold pieces, and the garment is cool, soft, and close-fitting. Hongzhao is at an age where he is still growing, and he will likely need to replace this shirt soon, so the expense is considerable. Not to mention the bells hanging from his hair, the jade pendant at his waist, and the necklace around his neck—none of them are ordinary.
Then look at the Fourth Prince next to him. The fabric of his clothes looks like the patterns that have long been abandoned in the palace. The color is also grayish. The stitches on the cuffs are loose, revealing some traces of mending. Although he is older than the Crown Prince, Hongzhao is still taller and looks more robust when they stand together.
This was also the first time that Hongli had formally met his younger brother, the Crown Prince. He had been a bit sensitive since childhood, and he could naturally sense the subtle glances that Consort Wan was giving them. But he was still a child and hadn't developed such a strong mind. He lowered his head and silently clenched the hem of his robe.
Hongzhao raised an eyebrow and looked down at himself, then turned his gaze to Hongli beside him. He understood what all this misunderstanding was about, but he didn't think much of it.
My dad bought this for me. If you want one, ask your dad to buy it for you too.
The atmosphere fell silent for a moment. Hongzhao kept in mind the principle that one should always be open and generous wherever one goes. He smiled and spoke first, "The flower wreath in Lady Wan's hand is really beautiful. It is so delicately woven that even the small branches have been removed. It has a very rustic charm."
Zhen Huan smiled and held up the willow branch in her hand to examine it. She was very pleased that the Fourth Prince had such a thoughtful gesture. Thinking that the two brothers were blood brothers, and how their mother fought was none of the children's business, she smiled and spoke.
"It's because of Fourth Prince's skillful hands that I like it very much. Is the Crown Prince going to Jiuzhou Qingyan? It just so happens that Fourth Prince also wants to pay his respects to the Emperor. Why don't you two brothers go together?"
A glint of light flashed in Hongli's lowered eyes upon hearing this. Yes, if he went with Hongzhao to pay respects to his father, the Emperor, they certainly wouldn't be stopped again. Besides, Consort Wan felt sorry for him seeing him standing next to the Crown Prince. If the Emperor saw him, and then looked at the pampered Crown Prince beside him, wouldn't he take him back to the palace?
His eyes flickered, and he turned to look at the Crown Prince with a hopeful expression, waiting for him to nod in vain. But to his surprise, the Crown Prince did not play by the rules.
Hongzhao shook his head decisively without any psychological burden, and his reason was perfectly reasonable: "Fourth brother, you don't know, Father is discussing state affairs with his ministers right now. Not to mention that no one else can get in at all, even if I take you there, I can't guarantee that Father won't be angry."
As he spoke, he naturally and elegantly shook his clothes—"I will certainly convey Fourth Brother's thoughts to Father Emperor. Father Emperor is still waiting for me, so I will not stay any longer. I will take my leave now." After saying this, he nodded slightly, took two steps back, and turned to leave.
Zhen Huan looked somewhat troubled as she watched Hong Zhao's dashing departure. Helplessly, she bent down and gently patted the dejected Hong Li's shoulder, softly comforting him, "It's alright. The Emperor is very busy with state affairs right now. Once things calm down, Consort Wan will take you to see Father Emperor, okay?"
Hongli pursed his lips into a tight line, gritted his teeth, and nodded obediently, saying, "Your subject only needs to see Father Emperor once." What he was really thinking was anyone's guess.
The delay on the road to Hongzhao meant that it was later than usual when they arrived at Jiuzhou Qingyan. He straightened his clothes and walked in properly. As soon as he entered the room, he heard his father, the Emperor, ask him a question.
"The Eighth Prince, Yinzhi, and the Ninth Prince, Yintang, are not only not reflecting on their mistakes while imprisoned in the Imperial Clan Court, but they also insulted me and the late Emperor. What do you think I should do with them? I would like to hear your opinions."
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